Entrepreneur Petri Huuhka came up with the idea for a gym container in Raisio in 2018, driven by his personal interest. An unexpected call from the Utti Jaeger Regiment launched a development journey that took the prototype to international markets including Nato.
A retired police officer, Petri Huuhka has in recent years focused on developing his family-owned Garden Gym in Raisio. In 2018, he came up with the idea of a gym container that could be assembled in minutes and transported anywhere by land, sea or air.
With the help of an innovation voucher, Petri obtained a patent for the sliding rail mechanism of the racks that can be pulled out of the container.
A Facebook post about the unique gym container received an enthusiastic response, and soon the phone rang. The caller was a exercise officer from the Utti Jaeger Regiment, who said he had been looking for something like this all over the world.
– The first container gym went to Utti in 2021. When the officer came to pick it up, he thought the army could need a lot more of these, says Petri, now CEO of Cargofit.
This marked the beginning of close development work with the Finnish Defence Forces.
Networks proved vital for growth
The design office Focus Plan created a 3D model of the container, which Petri also visited often to review the details. The initial development work took 600 hours.
– Martti Tuhkalainen, familiar from our gym, made an equity investment in Cargofit in 2020, which we used for designing the new container. Networks have proven invaluable in securing funding, though we’ve also put in a lot of our own money.
In 2022, the company applied for and received development support from the ELY Centre, which was used to build the prototype of the next container.
Through a good friend, Petri was introduced to Perttu Huuhka of Metalliasennus Huuhka Oy in Sauvo, and despite sharing the same last name they are not related. Cooperation between Cargofit and Huuhka Oy began with a handshake, and the backing of a large company provided a strong foundation for the future.
– We are wholeheartedly committed to the development and production of Cargofit, says Perttu, who now works as the company’s Production Manager.
Today, design runs smoothly in collaboration with designer Esa Nurmi of Huuhka Oy, and the containers are finished at the company’s hall in Sauvo. The first units were manufactured in Turkey, with future production moving closer to Estonia. The sliding rail mechanisms and equipment racks are installed in Sauvo.
From the start, Cargofit’s development has been customer-driven.
– I call customers a couple of times a year to ask if anything needs improving, but there really hasn’t been, Petri says.
On the suggestion of his daughter, crossfit coach Sanna Huuhka, the racks will now be painted with matte paint to ensure a better grip even in the rain.
Development opens doors to new markets
The Finnish Defence Forces already use eight Cargofit gym containers, with two more on order. In summer 2022, new opportunities opened up when the company obtained Nato codes and access to Nato’s online marketplace. The first Nato sale was concluded in spring 2025, with two containers delivered to the Canadian Army in Latvia.
– Barracks may have great gyms, but this container can be taken even to a forest exercise, says Perttu.
The Belgian Armed Forces are expected to order 10–20 containers. The Dutch police special forces have expressed interest in a container half the size of the existing model. Designer Esa Nurmi has created a 3D rendering of the new 10-foot version, which was presented at a London defense fair in early September.
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Customer-driven development has opened the next market for the company.
– A smaller and more affordable model could be suitable for anyone’s backyard, for companies, or for city centers, maybe along the Aura River in Turku, Perttu Huuhka reflects.
The first private order was already received this autumn.
The Huuhkas believe growth could be faster with a strong development partner alongside them. Still, the direction is right.
– Many people have believed in this from the beginning, even when my own faith has sometimes faltered. Now our goal is to raise turnover to 1.5–2 million euros next year, and after that, the sky is the limit, Petri Huuhka envisions.
